Gasket



Dec. 16, 1924. 1,519,803

w. s. sr-:LLARs ET AL GASKET Filed Oct. 20. 1919 Patented 16, u1924.

UNITED STATES isiasos `Pari-:NT .,oFFlca.

WILLIAM S. SELLABS, OFA BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, AND BERTON S. CLARK, OF HAY- WOOD, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNORS TO AMERICAN GAN COHYANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.,

A. CORPORATION 0F NEW YORK.

GASKET.

Application mea october 2o, 1919. serial ne. 332,067.

To all whom t mayconcem:

vBe it Aknown that we, WILLIAM S. Snr.- LARs, of Brooklyn, New York, and .BERTON S. CLARK, of Maywood, Illinois, citizens of the United States, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Gaskets, of which the following is a spcciiication.

This invention relates in general to gaskets providedfor the inclusion in the seams of metal cans for the purpose of rendering such seams hermetically tight, and has more particular reference to libre or paper gasket-s provided for use 1n thls' connectlon. This invention is of peculiar value .when used in connection with the ordinary tm can provided for the packaging of ediblesubstances, although it will. be readily understood that it also has value in gaskets used in cans and containers of other character.`

Under certain conditions it has been found that the liquid portion of the contents of the can aifected the gasket provided in a cover seam causing it to swell and render difficult the production of a tight hermetlc ]o1nt 1n the closing machines. This absorption of liquid is `of course in many instances not ob' jectionable after the seam has been tightly closed and compressed, for the contact of the liquid with the gasket at that time merely tends to increase the hermetic character of the closure by the swelling or expansion of the gasket.

A principal lobject of the lnventlon 1s the provision of a gasket which will not frpnra practical standpoint absorb any of the liquid content of the can prior tothe completion of the seaming operation, when the can is handled in any of the usual fashions, and which will slightly take up by capillary actionA an amount of the liquid to swell the gasket 1n the seam. The invention contemplates the provision of such a gasket Which'will be of tasteless, odorless material and which will not have a detrimental eect upon the contents within the can, neither discoloring it' A stillv further and highly important ohject of the invention is the provision oif' a gasket which will have incorporated in it a material fusible at the heat of processing to an extent that will permit said material to flow into,- or be (pressed into, the interstices of the seam an of the gasket body material itself, to in this manner form or aid 1n the forming of a completely hermetically tight closure.

The invention contemplates the provision of a gasket having these and other valuable advantages which will have the iexibility of the paper gasket used prior to this invention and which will permit the use of the ordinary machines now provided to operate upon the can, and this without any adjustment or reconstruction whatever of such machines. This flexibility should be of a character to prevent the fibres cracking or breaking or separating when the seam is made.

A, still further and important object of the invention is the provision of a gasket which will retard capillary action of contents, such as oil, placed within the can, to a degree that will entirely prevent such contents from passing through the seam by reason of capillary action.

There is also another very important advantage attendant upon the production of this -type of paper from` which to produce sanitary gaskets. In the manufacture and handling of paper in the Vfactory where the gaskets are cut and 'applied to can ends quite frequently considerable difficulty is encountered from. the paper and gaskets absorbing an excess amount of moisture on humid and wet days, thus causing the paper to lose more or less of its resilience and its strength, so that in handling it and especially `in handling the gaskets or thedisks from which gaskets' are cut they become so flexible and limp from this excess absorption of moisture from the atmosphere that it is ditlicult to handle Athem in the ordinary machines at the ordinary speeds.

The invention has for a further object the provision of fibre gaskets for the .purposes mentioned and this without the creation of appreciable dust and lint as "an incident to the cutting and handling ofthe gasket material and the gaskets produced therefrom.

, A still further and highly important object of the invention is the provision of a gasket composed'of material, by its character facilitating vthe action of the machines operating upon it and upon the can seam. The invention in this respect contemplates the provision of a gasket material adapted to act as a mild lubricant in the punches and dies and also in the seaming of the can, to permit the metal parts of the seam to readily assume their final form and relation.

The invention also has for an 'object the provision of a new and improved process for the manufacture of gaskets, primarily of the character herein described.

Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention Will be apparent from the following description. 'i

ln the drawing the single figure illustrates the invention.

A gasket embodying my present invention is cut in suitable shape and size from a fibrous sheet consisting of interlaced fibres, individually coated with a material fusible at processing. temperature; tasteless, odor less, substantially colorless and insoluble in ,water and in the weak salt, acid and sugar solutions, liquors and Syrups which ordinarily form the liquid portion of the contents of the food product Within a can. This coating material may conveniently be provided upon the fibrous particles of the body material of the sheet by depositing or coating it thereon as a result of saturation of the already constructed paper or fibrous sheet With a solution containing the material and subsequently drying to drive ofi' the solvent. This method of coating the material is made the subject matter claimed in this application and the present invention includes both the process and thel resulting product.

The coating material to be employed isy aluminum oleate and it is believed that this material possesses the desired characteristics herein mentioned in a mest marked degree.` This aluminum oleate is provided by saponif ving oleic acid with sodium hydroxide kgiving a resulting product of sodium oleate. This sodium oleate in solutionin water is mixed with a suitable quantity of any aluminum salt, as for example aluminum chloride or aluminum sulphate either in solution in water or in solid state. The mixing of these substances produces a chemical actioli in which the aluminum replaces the sodium, producing aluminum oleate. This reaction occurs in accordance with the well known law of chemistry to the effect that Where two salts in solution are mixed and the positive radical of one with the negative radical of the other will produce 'an insoluble salt, said insoluble saltvwill be formed. The aluminum oleate is first washed with hot water to remove any excess of the reagents used for its production and is then dissolved in a.

vthe most marked degree.

Suitable solvent, as for example bcnzol or turpentine. Sheet material to be treated is then saturated with this solution and permitted to dry. When the solvent employed has entirely dried out it will be found that the aluminum oleate has formed a coating of the fibres of the body sheet and the material is ready for use for productionjof gaskets.

The invention is not to be considered to be limited to the use of this particular material aluminum oleate but contemplates the use of substances having like or substantially like qualities. The oleic acid and the aluminum salt belong to groups of materialsI and are merely in this instance selected as contributing to the advantages mentioned in The product resulting from this method of producing the gaskets provides a slight excess of alumlnum oleate'at the outer faces of the gasket, so that when the same is formed there is this excess present to further aid in the filling of the interstices in the seam and between the fibres of the body sheet.

After the paper or fibre sheet is thus formed, the gaskets may be made from it through the use of suitable or any usual i lements or machines and thereafter handled as gaskets have been handled prior to my present invention. It should be stated perhaps that the invention contemplates any and all departures and changes in the described product and process which come within the scope and meaning of the claims appended hereto.l

Experience has demonstrated that `gaskets embodying this invention may be used in containers wherein fibre gaskets in the past have been proven unsuccessful by reason of the facility they have provided for the capillary action of the contents of the can, that is to say, where oiis have been packed in cans, the oil has been found to ooze from the can by capillary action, in other Words the gasket has acted as a wick. lVhere a gasket embodying my present invention is used, the capillary action is retarded to a degree that it prevents any oozing out of the material from this cause.

The aluminum oleate when coated uponthe particles in the gasket enables the gasket to provide an unusually tight seam through the mere operation of double seaming and without the necessity of swelling as a result of absorption of the moisture within the can ;l in otherwords, the gasket embodying my present invention may be used to provide a vacuum can having a dry content. The oleate under the pressure vof the seaming lrolls tends to close the minute interstices normally present in the gasket material and this action, of course, is increased by the heat of processing, the sizing material being fusible at processing temlio perature and flowing under the pressure into any pores or interstices. Gaskets of these materials will ultimately absorb moisture and swell, if moisture be present within the can, so that in the packing of liquid and solid content the extremely tight seam provided by seaming in the substantially dry gasket is further reinforced by the swelling action usually occasioned as an incident to the gaskets employed prior to my invention. In other Words both in the packing of wet products and in the packing of dry products, gaskets embodying the present invention are possessed of peculiar, novel and highly valuable properties.

Gaskets made as described are so flexible that the libres do not crack or break or separate in the manipulation during the making of the seam. Moreover, the fibres are not stiifened appreciably so that the duty of the seaming rolls is not materially increased. The fusibility of the sizing material enables this material to close up any openings resulting from inequalities and at the same time facilitates the absorption of moisture to subsequently swell the seam, in both ways, in other ways aiding in the formation of an hermetic joint.

It has been found that this paper as prepare'd by the process herein described resists the absorption of moisture from the air to such an extent that the machines for A handling this paper can be operated at about the same speed and with practically the same eiiciency on moist and humid days as they can on dry days, as with the ordinary gasket paper. This advantage is of very great importance, as it removes one of the main difficulties that have heretofore been experienced in the factory producing paper gasket lined can en'ds. A large roll of paper impregnated with this material does notl absorb moisture hardly at all, but When the roll is cut u into strips and' these strips are cut into dis s from which the gaskets are eventually produced the edges of these exposed disks, if not impregnated with this material, absorb more or less of the moisture from the lair and produce the results just above mentioned, while in the disks cut from this impregnated paper the moisture absorbent properties are retarded to such an extent that these disks can be carried over in the factory for several days and not absorb enough moisture toA cause undue difficulty in the machines.

In addition to this there seems to be quite considerable less dust and lint pro'duced when cutting gaskets from this impregnated paper than when cutting gaskets from the ordinary paper that has not been treated by this process. This is also of considerable advantage as the air around the machines where ordinary paper is used is more or less laden with the paper dust and lint produced from the cutting, this dust settling on the various machines and also somewhat polluting the air that the operator has to breathe. In fact, this impregnated paper being treated in the manner specified seems to handle much better in all processes of manufacture up to the time that the gasket O'oes to the consumer to be applied to the lled can, at which time it has the advantages as heretofore stated.

A still further practical advantage has developed in the use of this impregnated gasket paper throu h the lubricating tendency of the materia use'd for impregnation. In the cutting of gaskets from the sheet it is usuall done b means of an ordinary type of puncli and ie. It has been found in practice that the cutting of paper with an ordinary punch and die requires quite frequent sharpening and considerable maintenance of the punch and die to keep them in goodl working order and to m-aintain keen cutting edges. When using gasket material, however, impregnated with the material referred to in this specificationl it has been found to possess certain lubricating qualities and enables the use of punches and dies for quite prolonged periods without sharpening or any attention Whatever. While ordinary paper seems to possess more or less of an abrasive action, this same paper when impregnated with the material mentioned seems to have lost its abrasive tendency and instead lubricates the surfaces of the punch and die in such a manner as to bring about the results above stated, and in like manner facilitates the seaming operations by permitting the metal parts to slide into` final form.

Reference is here made to my companion application No. 332,066, filed concurrently herewith for gaskets and method of producing same.

We claim:

1. A fibre gasket in the inclusion of a can 4for the hermetic sealing thereof, and having incorporated in it a water insoluble metallic soap deposit.

2. A fiber gasket for inclusion in the seam of a'can for the hermetic sealing thereof and having aluminum oleate incorporated therein.

3. A fiber gasket for inclusion in the seam of a can for the hermetic sealing thereof and havinr aluminum oleate incorporated therein an forming a coating for the fibers thereof.

4. A fiber gasket for inclusion in the seam of a can for the hermetic sealing thereof and having incorporated in it a Water insoluble metallic soap forming a coating on the fiber of the gasket, temporarily retarding an absorption of the liquid.

WILLIAM S. SELLARS. BERTON S. CLARK. 

